- May 14, 2026
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Roberta Beranek has been in several businesses, from real estate to interior design to retail buyer. And she’s started two companies. One was in pet accessories and another was a hair bow and headband line.
But Naples Fashion Week has brought out Beranek’s entrepreneurial passion and spirit like nothing else she has done. Naples Fashion Week is pretty much what it sounds like: a week of fashion-themed events, parties, runway shows and more in Naples, leading to a big finale at Ferrari Naples. Naples Fashion Week was held in 2022 and 2023, then took a year off. Through some contacts, Beranek, 45, says she was presented with an opportunity to buy the brand in 2024. “I decided to take it and run with it and turn it into what it is today,” she says.
Beranek debuted her version of NFW in 2025 and the 2026 edition was held from March 27-April 4. The most recent week included luxury brunches, cocktail parties and pop-up shows. Some of the proceeds of the event went to local charities, for women, children and animals. Naples Fashion Week has spawned another business for Beranek, too, in hosting events. That’s at the NFW Collective on tony Fifth Avenue, which has hosted corporate dinners, bridal showers, charity events and more.
Beranek, who grew up in Chicago, says Naples, while not having the glitz of, say, Miami, is ready to embrace an annual fashion show that comes with a lot of surprise and delight. “It's kind of the opposite of a local production,” she says of the shows that make up NFW. “It definitely feels like you're transported to Milan or New York or somewhere.”
The success of 2026 fuels Beranek’s optimism that Naples Fashion Week 2027 will be bigger and better than this past year.
“I think this market is definitely ready for it,” she says. “There was a lot of FOMO happening. People were like, ‘wow, I didn't realize these events were going to be this well-produced.’ I missed out. I'm sad I wasn't there. I'm sad I wasn't in town.’”
“I definitely think we're ready,” she adds, “and this is growing faster than I had anticipated.”
Another element of a strong outlook is from the fashion companies and designers who came to Naples this year. Beranek says some did so well with sales they asked her to help find a permanent retail space in town.
“I'm already starting to plan immediately for next year's show,” she says. “So just really focusing on how I can take something that was amazing and elevate it. I'm constantly competing with myself, reflecting on what went wrong, what went right and then just executing on how we can take this to the next level.”
After the last show at her first Naples Fashion Week, in 2025, Beranek sat by herself in an empty Ferrari showroom. She had an exhausted sense of both relief and belief. “I believed in myself, obviously, but I had no idea that I could produce something like this, that brought together this group of people and then I executed an event at a level I had never even dreamed of,” she says. “I just looked at an empty 120-foot runway, once it emptied out and all the people were gone, and I was like, ‘wow, I just did this.’
Beranek’s four words of wisdom for aspiring entrepreneurs: start small, grow big.
“Sometimes I like to get ahead of myself, and I bite off more than I can chew, and then you're trying to keep up with yourself,” she says. “So I would say, take baby steps, but just have the confidence to believe in yourself, to know that you can do it. And as you cross each milestone you set for yourself, you just realize it makes you feel more confident in your abilities. So just believing in yourself is such a big part of being an entrepreneur.”
Beranek was diagnosed with skin cancer when she was 19 years old. "It had grown to my bone and was pretty extensive," she says. "I almost lost my left leg."
She took a year off of college, she says, to regroup her life and learn to walk again. "It taught me that life is short, and perseverance is everything," she says. "If you believe in yourself and believe in healing and believe in getting through a situation it will always happen."
Overspending in the early stages of a business.
“When you're really trying to get a business off the ground, you're just throwing money and money and you're so excited that sometimes you lose track of your budget, because you just are so passionate about your dream,” she says. “I think initially, I've overspent on almost every company that I've ever started, which then takes you a little bit of time to catch up.”
The lesson: “Make sure that you have a budget to start with,” Beranek says. “Really know where you're headed and stick within that while you're growing.”
